Echo
by ThievesCantSpeak
Summary: Inspired by Hyouka. Marik Ishtar is given a great opportunity to travel abroad and chooses to study in Japan. He winds up at the same high school his older sister, Isis, attended during her time of study. At her request, Marik thinks about joining the Classic Literature Club in order to get a better grasp on the language. Full summary inside.
1. Letters From Egypt: Part One

**Title:** Echo  
**Author:** ThievesCantSpeak ( formerly known as both Licarouche and IntimateMoments )  
**Rating:** T  
**Fandom:** Yu-Gi-Oh!  
**Pairing(s):** Thiefshipping / Yami Bakura x Marik-centric ; mentions of Wishshipping and Ripshipping  
**Genre:** Fanfiction ; Alternate Universe ; Mystery ; Crime ; Drama  
**Summary:** Inspired by Hyouka. Marik Ishtar is given a great opportunity to travel abroad and chooses to study in Japan. He winds up at the same high school his older sister, Isis, attended during her time of study. At her request, Marik thinks about joining the Classic Literature Club in order to get a better grasp on the language. However, once he joins, Marik winds up in situations he could never imagine.

* * *

Dear Marik,

I hope the flight to Japan was pleasant. The last time I was on a plane all went well. Then again, I was privileged to fly first class. Anyways, I hope that things were easy for you. Here at home, father has been anxious and keeps mentioning that he wants to hear from you. As annoying as that might, it's only because he loves you and cares about your well-being.

How exciting, right? To study overseas is a blessing, so take full advantage of it. I'm only sorry that I didn't get to see you off at the airport. How exciting, right? After talking to father and Rishid, I heard you were going to Domino High School? I spent my last two high school years there. I'm actually a bit envious that you get to spend all four years there. The students during my time there were wonderful and kind. I can only wish that you will have the same wonderful experience.

If I could offer one piece of advice, it would be this:

Join the Classic Literature Club.

I spent some of my days there and found it to be an interesting experience. I know you'll want to follow your own path, but since your Japanese isn't as fully developed—I know you barely touched the books I've sent you—it would be good to start by reading and writing. Hopefully, you'll have a dictionary with you to make things easier on you. From what I understand, you can at least write several kanji characters, as well as the hiragana and katakana alphabet. However, that will only get you so far. Join the club and read as much as possible.

Besides, you might make some friends there. That would be nice, wouldn't it?

Please write back or call me once you're settled.

Love,

Ishizu


	2. Letters From Egypt: Part Two

**A/N****: **In this story, Thief King Bakura / Akefia, Yami Bakura and Ryou are brothers. Akefia is the eldest brother while Yami Bakura and Ryou are twins. As for Akefia and Yami Bakura, their names are Riou (king of advantages) and Rou (wander).

* * *

To my younger brothers,

How've things been since I left? Save all your tears for something else (just kidding!). I'll be back sooner before you know it. I would've stayed at home longer, but after dad showed us that photo album of his travels in Egypt, I just had to see it all for myself. I managed to get some souvenirs that I'm planning on bringing back in a week or so. I think you'll find them interesting.

Other than that, congrats on getting into high school successfully. I hope that the first grading period was a breeze. But I must say that I would have expected you two to get into a better school, to be honest. Both of your are smart and could do great. If I come home to find that you guys have average grades, I'll beat the crap out of you!

So, Domino High, huh? Man, I'm sorry if the teachers give you a hard time because of me. I wasn't exactly a model student, if you remember. But if anything, have some fun. Life can't be all work, right? The culture festival is coming up, so that should be fun! You guys _are_ in clubs, right? If not, both of you need to get out of the house more often! I know games are fun and all, but live a life from excitement.

Ha, look at me, acting all mature for once. But you know what? It's because I've been in your shoes, so listen to me for once.

I'll see you guys soon!

From,

Riou


	3. Those Who Sell Violets: Part One

**Those Who Sell Violet: Part One**

After reading the letter from his brother several times, Rou decided to pin it on the bulletin board in the kitchen. It was strange ; just as Riou had said in his letter, this was a rare moment where he actually gave mature and meaningful advice. Knowing that his brother used to be a rebel in his early teenage years, Rou could only wonder what made him change. He didn't particularly like that his brother, his role model for defying all rules, had now settled down in terms of personality and took his studies a bit more seriously. Sure, he was still the same arrogant and smug person, but he was different nonetheless.

"Maybe it's a good thing," Ryou, his younger twin, suggested. "It's great that he managed to change."

_Whatever you say_.

Contrary to what their brother had hoped, school was uneventful — especially for Rou. Unlike his younger brother, he didn't really like to participate in club activities. He had put his name down for the Classic Literature Club, just so his teacher would get off his back about it. But even then, when he went to the clubroom on the first meeting day, he found that he was the only member. Any members that took part in the club had graduated last spring, leaving Rou by himself. He kept saying that it was for the better. Ryou invited him to check out the Gamer's Club, since they both shared an interest in tabletop games. However, Rou only shrugged it off, saying:

"If it's unnecessary, then I won't do it."

Since then, many of the students regarded Rou as lazy and dull. Some went as far to call him the "Monochrome Bakura" while Ryou was the "Lively Bakura." This often sparked some sort of conversation between the brothers, much to Rou's annoyance.

"You should lighten up a little," Ryou would say with a persistent smile. "Don't you want a colorful life?"

"Tch, no," the older retorted. "That's too much work."

Ryou's smile would widen. "I wonder what you're saving your energy for..." he would murmur.

But that was Rou's way of life and he wouldn't trade it for anything else. Why do something insignificant when there were more pressing matters? If he wasted all that time thinking of how to solve a miniscule problem, how could he even muster up the strength to tackle something bigger?

"Just go home already," said Rou to the younger as he put his books in his bag. "You don't have any club activities today, right?"

The younger raised an eyebrow. "You're not coming home yet?" He then let out a light laugh. "You usually go straight home. Did you get in trouble again?"

"Haha, very funny." Rou scratched his cheek, a frown tugging at his lips. "I have to go to my club today."

Ryou let out a chuckle, quickly covering his mouth with his hands once he saw his brother's irritated expression. "I'm sorry," he said, still trying to recover. "It's just that you never go since you're the 'president'."

"Yeah, yeah," the older muttered. "I got called in during lunch by the club supervisor. If I was the sole member, he could care less what I do. But since yesterday, some people had joined the club so I have to show them around."

"So then are they new students? I want to meet them!"

Rou rolled his eyes. "Just go home. This is troublesome enough. I don't need to entertain you, too."

"Hm? I though it would better this way," Ryou said. "Think about it. I could do all the talking for you. All you have to do is show your face, right?"

Rou put his hand to his chin, contemplating the situation. He _could_just get his brother to go for him entirely and waste no energy whatsoever. However, he began to think of the long term effects. If he were to go through with Ryou taking his place — first off, Ryou would say yes regardless — then he could go home. But if the supervisor ever found out, then not only would he be yelled at, but he would probably have to face some sort of repercussions, such as formerly introducing himself to the new student and other things.

"Fine. Let's just make this quick," Rou finally said as he stood up. "C'mon. The sooner we're done, the sooner we can leave."

"I'll meet you there," said the younger. "I just remembered, I have to return Yugi's notebook." He got up quickly and left the room, Rou heaving a sigh.

_What am I going to do with him?_

* * *

As he crossed over to the Cultural Building, Rou could hear the Track Team shouting "Dom-i-no!" repeatedly with every step they took. Although he could learn to pace himself, it would be too much work to be in athletics. It wasn't that Rou hated sports, since it proved to be a good outlet for anger. But having to deal with the competition between other teams and your own classmates... that's what got him. He felt the same when it came to academic and art clubs. Everything becomes a needless competition.

He continued on until he reached the first floor of the building. He remembered his first week of school, when he was deciding on what club to "join," so to speak. He picked the Classic Literature Club for several reasons. One, it was on the first floor of the building, so the stairs were knocked out of the equation. Two, there were no straining activities, physical or mental. If anything, the members would discuss whichever books that were picked. At least Rou liked to read. As long as he affirmed someone's comment or whatnot, he could get away with participation.

Sadly, that wasn't the case.

Rou pulled out the key to the room once he was several inches away. He figured that it would be best not to assume that the door would be open and borrowed the key beforehand. From what he remembered from his meeting with the supervisor, the new student would meet up with him. _He better not make me wait_, he thought as he opened the door to the empty room.

Well, empty wouldn't be the right word for it.

To his surprise, there was a person already inside the room. A boy.

He was quite a rare sight. Not only did he have golden skin, but his hair was composed of light, blonde shades. As he turned around, Rou noticed that the other boy had defined features. But what intrigued him most was the boy's violet eyes. Surely, they had to be contacts, but they were interesting nonetheless.

Before Rou could even mutter a "hello" of sorts, the other boy quickly walked over to him, his face just centimeters away. Those large eyes stared through Rou, as if he were trying to see into him. The boy then took a few locks of Rou's white hair in his hands and stared at it, clearly mesmerized by it. However, Rou quickly backed away and swatted the boy's hand. Didn't he have a sense of personal space?

"What the hell's wrong with you?!" he shouted, frightening the boy.

He seemed to pause for a moment, as if he were thinking of an answer. After a few false starts, the other boy shook his head and walked over to the chalkboard. He picked up a piece of chalk and began to write down garbled hiragana characters, as if a young child were writing. Rou looked over the what was written several times before finally understanding it.

_My name is Marik Ishtar.  
__I'm a new student and my Japanese is terrible.  
__I only write. No speaking.  
__It's nice to meet you.  
__What is your name?_

_He can't be serious_, Rou thought. _He didn't even say sorry._

Usually, transfer students were fairly good in speaking Japanese — at least at an elementary school student's expectation. Not only were his characters sloppy, but the fact that he can't speak makes it all the more difficult. Rou scratched the back of his head before picking up another piece of chalk. He looked once more at what Marik had written.

_He probably can't read any kanji,_he told himself as he wrote down a reply. At least with hiragana, there would be less strokes ; that had to have made things easier.

_My name is Bakura.  
__Are you a new student?_

Marik watched, amazed at how swift the other was writing. The lines were far more smoother than his own, as to be expected. The blonde nodded and replied.

_Yes. I am from Egypt.  
__Are you a club member?_

A question that could change everything. If Rou answered "yes," then this person might become dependent on him. God, he didn't even want to think of the responsibilities he would have. Then again, the image of the club advisor berating him for what would seem like forever.

_Yes. I am the club's president.  
__I'm sorry to say this, but we will not be having any club activities today._

_There_, he thought. Maybe this would speed up the going home process. If Ryou came by, he could just lie and say that the transfer student never showed up. However, as he was about to gather his things, Marik began to tap on the board with a confused expression on his face. Rou sighed as the other began to scribble on the board.

_Before you go, I want to know...  
__Who is Mary Benny?_

Rou stared at the board for a long while, bewildered by the other's question. It made no sense whatsoever. It was obviously a person, but how could Rou know who that was? Besides, how did he know if it were one person or two? He shook his head as he pinched the bridge of his nose, frustrated.

"Rou," his brother called from the doorway. "Sorry I took a while."

"Oh," the older responded. "Right. Uhm, anyways, Ryou, this is the new kid. His name's Marik."

Ryou looked at Marik with curious eyes, completely captured and interested. Just as he did with Rou, Marik went up to the younger Bakura and looked at his hair. This startled Ryou at first, but he chose to laugh it off. It had been a long time since someone had done anything regarding his and his brothers' hair color.

"He can only write in Japanese," Rou whispered to his brother, receiving a nod in response. The younger then pointed at the board.

"Is kanji too hard to read?" he asked.

"Yeah. But that's not the weird part. Look at what he wrote."

As Ryou walked over to the board, Rou noticed that Marik's gaze was locked on him. It wasn't so strange. After all, if two people spoke in a language he couldn't understand, he'd probably be just as confused.

"I don't get it," Ryou said as he brought his hand to his chin. He then grabbed a piece of chalk and jotted down something. When he was done, he tapped on the board to call the others' attention.

_I don't understand._

Marik made a surprised sound as his eyes lit up, almost like he understood something. He went over to a table by the window, where his belongings were. As he shuffled through his bag, the two brothers exchanged confused looks until the blonde came back with a piece of paper. He went straight to the board.

_My older sister wrote this when she studied here.  
__It's a haiku about someone named Mary Benny.  
__When I asked her, she laughed.  
__Then she told me to ask a classmate to help me._

Rou felt his lips tugging into a frown as he crossed his arms over his chest. And what? Was he supposed to go out of his way to solve this stupid riddle? Why on earth should he waste his time with a stranger trying to figure out some cryptic message written by someone he didn't know?

"Let's just go," he spat out. But before he could say anymore, he saw that Ryou had taken the paper from Marik and began to read it. Although he was annoyed, he couldn't help but be curious by this point. Without realizing it, his eyes glanced over the paper as well.

_It's Mary Benny  
__It always rolls  
__Wait... wait for me_

_This is getting to be ridiculous_, Rou thought. He would just leave his brother to handle everything. After all, since they're twins, the club supervisor wouldn't be able to tell the difference on who stayed to help if Marik couldn't even tell them apart. But know their dad and how much he babied Ryou even though he and Rou were the same age...

"Do you have any ideas?" Ryou asked.

The older shook his head. What made it more difficult was that Marik's sister wrote in hiragana as well. He scanned the paper over and over again, wondering if it was supposed to make sense at all. Why would his sister write about someone named Mary Benny? From the way the haiku was written, Mary Benny seemed to be a thing, rather than a person.

_Wait... what is that?_

Rou grabbed the paper from his brother and brought it closer to his face to get a better look at it. Then, he tried to wipe away what he believed to be a smudge. But once he rubbed his fingertips over the mark, he realized that it was a comma.

"I get it," he mumbled as he walked over to the board, grabbing a piece of chalk. He wrote down "I understand," to Marik and then began to scribble down various kanji and hiragana characters.

"What is it?" Ryou walked closer to his brother, as did Marik, to get a better look.

"The comma changes everything," Rou said as he continued to write. "Considering that the second line says that it 'rolls,' we can see what the first line is."

"S – So..."

The brothers turned around, watching as Marik struggled to say something. Just as he did earlier, he had a few false starts and kept stumbling over syllables. However, this time, he was actually going to say something. He was certain of it.

"So you know who Mary Benny is?" he asked.

"It's about time you said something," Rou said with a smirk as his brother clapped his hand, as to say "congratulations."

"Mary Benny isn't a person," Rou continued. "'Mari' is one word, which we can interpret as 'ball.' On the other hand, 'beni' can be turned into 'crimson.' So the first line reads as, 'The ball is red.'"

Ryou nodded as he smiled widely. "Well, that makes more sense."

"Also," said the older. "Without the comma, 'mari' and 'beni' become one word, 'maribeni.' However, if we follow what we first came up with, then 'beni' can be read as 'ku.' So then, finally, 'maribeni' can be read as 'mariku.'"

Rou heaved a sigh as he pointed over at Marik. "In other words, 'mariku' is you. That's your name in kanji."

Once he finished explaining everything to the best of his ability, both his brother and Marik applauded him. Who would have thought that something so unnecessarily complicated and yet so easy could entertain those two? Although Rou was far from entertained, he had to admit that he managed to kill some time with that little "mystery" of sorts.

After a few moments, the three boys decided to properly introduce themselves. However, as Ryou and Marik got to know each other, Rou stood at the doorway, puzzled. Why couldn't Marik's sister just tell him that "Mary Benny" was his name? Was it amusing to her, to see her younger brother struggle in this way? Did she get some sort of sick enjoyment from it? If he didn't know any better, Rou would think that his older brother would do the same thing.

In the end, the three boys ended up going home after introductions. As Rou contemplated the chaos he just put himself in, his brother interrupted his thoughts.

"By the way, weren't there more people who joined?" Ryou asked. He was right. What _did _happen to them?

"They probably flaked. Not my problem." Rou muttered. "Whatever. I don't need any more to think about."

_There's something more interesting and worth my investment._

* * *

**A/N****:** Don't worry. It'll get better, I promise.


End file.
